"Now that I've confirmed the True Creator's stance, I don't have to worry about clashing with the Aurora Order. Still, I can't let my guard down. The Ancient Sun God might be a good person, but the True Creator's gone mad. A madman's goodwill…" Alaric chuckled, shaking his head, and turned his thoughts to another matter.
"Time to head back to Backlund!"
Tomorrow was the day Xio would introduce him to a Beyonder gathering, where he'd likely meet Mr. A.
A madman's goodwill warranted caution, but it could still be useful.
The Shepherd's abilities, at least, were quite handy.
…
The next day, Backlund.
Arriving at the agreed meeting point, Alaric spotted Xio already waiting.
"Sorry for being late. I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long." Alaric said apologetically, noticing a woman beside Xio.
She wore a hooded cloak, leaning lazily against the wall, her face obscured, though brown hair peeked out from under the hood.
In an instant, Alaric knew who she was... Fors Wall, Backlund's famous author, future Tarot Club Magician, and the master of coasting to victory.
Among future Tarot Club members, if anyone's abilities made Alaric envious (besides Mr. Fool), it was Fors. No grand reason... just that the Traveler pathway was incredibly useful.
With Mr. Door's influence, wild Beyonders of this pathway were rare. To gain those abilities, Alaric could either buy Traveler-related mystical items or borrow power from Fors.
Relying on the two Abraham family traitors in the Aurora Order? Hardly.
Though, if he could turn them into mystical items, that might work… Alaric's thoughts wandered before Xio briefly introduced the woman beside her. Lacking full trust, Xio used the alias "Doctor" instead of Fors's real name.
After the introduction, Xio handed Alaric a hooded cloak, donned one herself, and whispered, "Follow us. Don't speak out of turn when we get there…" She gave a few instructions, then led Alaric and Fors to a waiting carriage.
Minutes later, they arrived and disembarked, stopping before an unremarkable wooden door. Xio knocked rhythmically, and the door opened from within.
Alaric's gaze swept the room. It wasn't large, but it held several people, most cloaked or masked to hide their identities. A few bold or inexperienced ones showed their faces.
The most striking figure sat on a single sofa, shrouded in a hooded cloak, sitting calmly yet exuding an air of superiority as they silently observed everyone.
"That's Mr. A, a powerful Beyonder... at least mid-sequence, maybe even sequence 6. He's hosting this gathering." Xio whispered, her expression serious.
At that moment, Mr. A, who had been sitting quietly, tilted his head slightly, as if listening to something.
A second later, he looked up toward Alaric.
"He's definitely a formidable Beyonder." Alaric said calmly, meeting Mr. A's gaze. The fervent intensity in those eyes confirmed Mr. A had received an oracle from the True Creator.
More than that, Alaric sensed something else. In that brief eye contact, Mr. A's favorability toward him skyrocketed, enough for Alaric to borrow the full abilities of a sequence 6 Rose Bishop.
It might seem only one sequence above Azik's sequence 7, but the gap was vast. Azik's peak was far higher, so borrowing sequence 7 power only required casual friendship. For Mr. A's sequence 6, Alaric needed near-devoted loyalty... next step, a bond of life and death.
Well, damn.
Is this what fanatical devotion looks like?
Alaric blinked, gave Mr. A a slight smile, then turned his attention to the central blackboard. "Is that where we list trade requests?"
After introducing Mr. A, Xio's focus shifted to the blackboard. She missed the brief exchange between Alaric and Mr. A, whispering, "Yes, members can anonymously post their needs on the board, whether buying or selling. As a Beyonder, you know most don't want their identities exposed."
"I understand." Alaric nodded, scanning the board. It listed common spiritual materials, potion formulas for sale, and occult knowledge books.
"Anything you want?" Fors, having checked the board and found no Joker potion formula, sighed in disappointment and asked casually.
"I need some spiritual materials to practice ritual magic." Alaric said openly, one of his reasons for attending.
Thanks to "Alaric Zoroast's" identity, he had a solid grasp of basic occult knowledge, and his high spirituality supported learning and performing ritual magic. But theory and practice differed. He wasn't deeply familiar with this world's ritual magic and needed practice.
Alaric knew that while his Shadow of Time skill let him borrow others' powers easily, it was still external. The skill's flaw was its reliance on favorability. If he fell out with powerful figures, he'd be left powerless.
Favorability was fickle... reliable until it wasn't. Maxing it out was no easy task.
Take Mr. A. His favorability could spike due to the True Creator's oracle, but it could just as easily plummet to zero if another oracle came.